The Scent of Roses and Paint
by Tsuki the Wolf
Summary: When Frisk touches the Legendary Artifact, it sends both them and Chara into a library where they meet a young girl by the name of Eve. Now with their Soul apparently tied to Eve's Soul, a language barrier, and a dangerous art gallery, Frisk needs to help Eve and Garry return back to their world while also trying to figure out how Frisk can return to to their own world.
1. Lady in Red and Blue

**A/N: Extra note: Narrator Chara is in here. Frisk is a flirt. Chara can also be a shit. People will die at least once in here. Just a heads up.** **Prior knowledge of Undertale or Ib not super necessary, because there isn't much about Undertale in this, but pretty much everything about Ib will be explained. So there will be a lot of spoilers for Ib.**

 **Because of Qin-Ying's doodles about Frisk and Eve switching games, I suddenly wanted to write a story about it. Of course I didn't follow her ideas exactly but . . .**

 **Anyway this was supposed to be one big oneshot, however it is already becoming absurdly long so I decided to split it into parts. why can't I make things simple**

 **Also if you've been a reader for me long enough, I know I said I'm going on hiatus but, well, shit happens. I'm still considering myself on hiatus, but I will try to update when I can.**

 **Please enjoy! And leave a review if you did to tell me what you think!**

* * *

The piano puzzle took Frisk a little while to figure out, mostly because they had needed to figure out the right notes for the instrument. Chara had informed them that there probably wasn't anything to win from the puzzle, but Frisk had been curious. This may not be their very first time going through this part of the Underground (they had been killed a number of times already), but it was the first time they finally knew the notes to the piano. They knew there was nothing ahead of them that couldn't wait, so they decided to stop and see what was hidden behind this particular puzzle.

" _*The wall opened._ " Chara said as they floated over to the open door. Frisk hopped off of the seat to follow them. Both of them peered into the cave to discover a single item on a pedestal. It was a red orb, roughly the size of a softball, and it appeared to be made of blown glass. Frisk felt cold looking at it, uncomfortable. They walked into the room and gazed at the orb, walking around it.

Chara hovered nearby, interested but otherwise quiet while Frisk inspected the object. Frisk glanced at the sign that was behind the object, but they weren't able to read it. " _*It is the Legendary Artifact._ " Chara explained to them. " _*Will you take it?_ "

Frisk hesitated to choose. They didn't like it. It made their stomach feel numb and empty just to look at it. They had a feeling it was dangerous. However, it may be useful. They did, after all, solve the puzzle, so maybe they were entitled to take it. If anything very bad happened, they could just Load. They decided to take it. Chara scooted in close as Frisk picked up the orb and the world dropped out beneath their feet. They blacked out.

* * *

They came to lying on a carpeted floor. They didn't feel any different than they had from before they had passed out, which was odd. But strangely enough they felt . . . disconnected. They couldn't explain it.

Frisk sat up slowly and glanced around. They were surrounded by short bookcases, much like the kind they would see in the children's section of the library where they lived. The walls and the flooring of the room they were in (because they _were_ in a room. How did they get there?) were both red. Frisk felt very slightly ill. They searched for Chara.

" _*I do not believe you are in Waterfall anymore._ " Chara's voice caught their attention. The spirit crossed their arms over their chest as they looked around as well while Frisk climbed to their feet. " _*It looks like a library._ "

The room was a little small, but not suffocating with the two rows of bookshelves on each side. Frisk decided that it would be best to examine the cases. Chara had a different idea.

"* _You should check the doors first._ " They seemed mildly disconcerted, which Frisk took as a sign that Chara had no clue where they were. The other human had admitted in a previous timeline that they hadn't seen what most of the Underground looked like, but through "reasons" (they never explained what they meant by that) Chara recognized most of the areas Frisk entered. This was uncharted territory.

Frisk hadn't even noticed the doors. There was one on each end of the room. They decided to try the one closest to them. They grabbed the knob and turned it, but the knob held fast.

"* _The door is locked._ " Chara mused. "* _Is there a key anywhere?_ "

Frisk shrugged but went to go try the other door when they heard a growl. The humans froze and listened. It sounded like there was something dragging rapidly across the floor outside of the room. Footsteps softly thudded as well, quickly approaching the room. Frisk tensed as the other door (apparently locked as well) was unlocked and thrown open by a young girl. Her long brown hair swirled around her as she spun around and slammed the door shut, breathing hard. Nobody moved for a moment before something pounded on the door. The girl squeaked in terror and backed away before turning to run, only to be startled by the sight of Frisk standing there. The girl leaped surprisingly high and what looked to be a rose flew from her hands. The girl now voiced a horrified gasp as the rose landed close to Frisk.

The little girl held her hands to her mouth, her face pale as she watched Frisk pick up the rose. Frisk tried not to be pricked on the thorns it had. As soon as the human touched it, the rose bloomed a bit more, five more petals appearing on it. Chara opened their mouth to say something, but a small voice cut them off.

The little girl lowered her hands and was asking a question. Her voice was shaky and weak, but Frisk thought she seemed like a human who didn't talk a lot either. They couldn't understand a word that she said, though. It seemed to be another language. Frisk frowned in confusion and glanced at Chara for help. They could recognize a question when they heard it. However they couldn't figure out if it was a question of if Frisk would hurt her or if it was about the rose. Whoever this was, Frisk decided, found this rose to be important. It was beautiful. It seemed almost too beautiful to be real.

Chara shot the girl a slightly confused look before they noticed Frisk waiting. " _*She asked if she could have her rose back. She said please._ " Chara only seemed more surprised and caught off guard as the little girl stared at Chara with large red eyes. Actually red, much like Chara's were. Could the little girl actually see the hovering human?

The rose really _was_ important to the girl. Well, they weren't about to keep it from her. Frisk approached with a soft smile, hoping to reassure the shaken girl, and held out the rose to her. The girl hesitated briefly, unnerved about being cornered it seemed, as she glanced first at Chara and then Frisk before carefully taking the rose back. Frisk felt warm in their chest suddenly, almost like when their Soul was outside of their body during battle. It felt a bit disconnecting. The girl whispered what must have been a thank you.

"* _She is thanking you._ " Chara confirmed. " _*. . .Can you see and hear me?_ " They asked the little girl. She nodded a little. Chara seemed surprised. "* _And understand me? I do not speak your language._ " This time the girl appeared to struggle a bit. She seemed mildly confused, as if she was mentally translating what she heard but only understood a little bit of it. That was probably the case, Frisk thought.

Finally the girl spoke again. Unlike her, Chara seemed to understand what she was saying perfectly as they hummed a little in understanding. Frisk looked at Chara for help because they had no idea what she'd said. Chara translated, "* _She understands some of what I am saying even though she does not speak the language I am speaking with you._ " Chara frowned at Frisk. "* _This is odd._ "

Frisk nodded in agreement. "Do you need help?" They asked the girl quietly. This time the girl only stared at Frisk uncomprehendingly. She looked at Chara and spoke again.

"* _She says she didn't understand you. Even though she can tell you and I are speaking the same language._ " The girl nodded in agreement to what Chara said. The spirit sighed. "* _It appears I will have to play translator._ " Frisk smiled and shrugged in thanks.

The little girl hesitated again, but then held out her hand. Frisk managed to catch her name "Eve", but not much else. They understood it was an introduction. Frisk took her hand and gave it a shake. "Frisk." They said, pointing at themselves. Eve smiled for the first time since Frisk had seen her. It seemed her nerves were finally calming down.

Chara quickly translated what she asked of Frisk. "* _Are you humans?"_

Frisk nodded. Did that mean monsters were after the girl? Frisk would try to talk to them if so. They were sure they could calm anything down!

"* _I am dead."_ Chara corrected the girl. "* _You should not be able to see me._ " Eve seemed surprised, but not scared by this fact. She held her rose closer to her and eyed Chara before seeming to decide that they weren't someone to be scared of. Chara was mildly annoyed by that. She asked a question that Frisk understood must be about asking what Chara's name was because the spirit replied with their name.

"* _We are not twins._ " Chara also added to her next question. She nodded and finally looked around her. Frisk still wondered what was happening. Where were they now and why did that rose sprout more petals? Frisk could see Eve eyeing the rose with just as much curiosity as she touched the petals. She glanced at Frisk but said nothing before she went to examine some of the books.

Frisk really looked at her now. She was younger than Frisk was and only a bit smaller. If Frisk had to guess, she was probably about nine or ten years old. Her clothing was very nice and reminded Frisk of private school uniforms with her white button up shirt and long red skirt. She also wore a red cravat to match her skirt along with tall black stockings and brown shoes. There were signs of injury on her from the way she walked, although Frisk couldn't see anything. Her legs were a bit scratched up and her shirt wasn't as pristine as Frisk had expected on their initial inspection. If this child was really going through the Underground, she was having an easier time than Frisk. They must look a mess considering they were covered with dirt and their outfit was more than a little torn up in certain places. They decided to take off their tutu for the meantime and put it in their inventory, switching instead to their torn ribbon to increase their cuteness factor and to seem a little less intimidating to the little girl.

Chara looked to Frisk. "* _What do you want to do? She seems to have some idea of what is happening._ "

Frisk agreed with that analysis. They were a little more curious about what was behind the door, though. They had their stick still with them, so they pulled it out and walked towards the door. Before they could open it, however, Eve ran over and grabbed the back of their shirt. She shook her head quickly.

"Dangerous." She warned, and Chara automatically translated.

Frisk nodded to show they understood, and Eve released them. They smiled soothingly and held up a finger to tell her they would be right back and exited the room.

The room they entered was much larger than the library. It had tall ceilings and odd statues that stood almost as high as the ceiling. The statues had barriers around them like an art museum. As Frisk glanced around, they realized there were other pieces of art hanging up. They weren't able to read them, however, and neither could Chara.

"* _It appears I can understand the spoken language, but not the written one."_ The humans gave each other curious looks about this phenomenon. Where were they at? An art gallery of sorts? The paintings, in Frisk's opinion, were a little disturbing. They felt lively, but not in the good way. Rather than being drawn to most of the pieces, Frisk rather felt a bit unnerved by them. The dragging sound didn't help. There was something in the room with them. Frisk wondered if the dripping figures of the "Uh" and "Ah" statues would come to life. It certainly felt like it.

A sharp grating growl ripped through the air and Frisk turned to see a painting coming at them. Only it seemed like half of a woman was clawing her way at them. She appeared stuck in the painting as she furiously clawed towards them. This was one of the scarier monsters Frisk had seen, they decided.

"* _I have never seen a monster like that._ " Chara confessed, eyeing the monster painting with curiosity. Frisk waited for their Soul to be summoned so that they could start the battle, but it never came. The woman lashed out, and absurdly sharp nails scratched at Frisk's leg. They cried out in shock and pain.

They didn't have turns. The woman kept coming at them. Frisk opened their mouth and told the painting that they didn't want to fight. It had no effect.

"* _It is like she did not hear you. *You doubt she even understands your language._ " Chara told them. Frisk still wasn't sure how it seemed that Chara sometimes knew exactly what they were thinking, but they had given up on trying to understand it. They were correct, after all.

Frisk fled back towards the room, limping a little from the sharp stinging of their injured leg. They had lost some health, but they couldn't sense how much.

"Frisk!" Eve called from the doorway. She held it open as Frisk reentered the library and they both pulled the door shut quickly. The painting yelled and pounded on the door, but the door held.

" _*I think she cannot open doors._ " Chara noted.

Eve hovered as she looked at Frisk's injured leg. It was obvious she was worried about the injury. Frisk sat on the floor and patted their blood off with the edge of their sweater's sleeve. They didn't mind the blood on it. The wound stung, but it wasn't too deep. If they held their sleeve there long enough, the blood would stop.

"Are you okay?" Eve asked. It took a moment for Chara to translate it.

Frisk nodded and glanced at the door, allowing their face to show their confusion.

" _The Lady in Red._ " Eve explained, drawing Frisk's attention back. The girl was gripping her skirt, clearly scared but holding herself together. She must be a pretty tough girl. "It is the name of the painting."

Frisk tilted their head, confused. "I don't . . . understand. Was that a monster?"

"* _Translating is going to become annoying._ " Chara muttered even as they continued to do so. At least Frisk didn't speak often.

"I don't know." Eve admitted. "The paintings and the art . . . keep coming to life and attacking." That didn't sound anything like the Underground. Frisk didn't think they were in the Underground any longer. It seemed they had left one dangerous situation and had entered another.

"* _The Legendary Artifact is missing._ " Chara pointed out right as Frisk realized this. "* _There are petals on the floor . . ._ "

Frisk glanced over to see the red on red that were a couple petals from the rose in Eve's hand. Frisk pointed at it with a tilt of their head. Eve shook her head.

"Something about this rose is weird." The little girl said. "When I get hurt, it loses petals. And if it gets hurt, I also get hurt." She bit her lip a little, checking on her rose before she looked back at Frisk. "But I didn't get hurt. You did. But my rose lost petals."

"* _The rose grew petals when Frisk touched it._ " Chara told her. Eve was silent as she gently touched one of the extra petals before she nodded.

"Do you have a rose?" She asked. Frisk shook their head.

"I think . . . we share a rose now." That seemed odd, but it wasn't the strangest thing to happen to Frisk today.

Eve seemed to sympathize with that thought. "Maybe."

"* _If your Souls are connected through the rose, perhaps that is why she can see and understand me._ " Chara suggested.

"I'm sorry." Frisk pulled their sleeve away from the wound. It still stung, but the bleeding had stopped. "I got hurt and hurt your flower."

Eve shook her head and helped Frisk stand. "I hope there is a vase around. It will heal the rose." She said hopefully. That sounded like a Save point. Frisk nodded in agreement. They needed to find a way through that door so that they could go find a vase.

"* _The door is locked._ " Chara told Eve when the girl attempted to open it. She immediately moved to check the bookshelves. Frisk joined her in the search. They couldn't understand anything in the books, but they could still try to find a switch or a key.

Some of the books, Frisk thought, had some curious pictures in it. They all appeared to be, for the most part, art-related. At one point the human pulled out a slip of paper that had been wedged between books. It was unreadable to them, until they blinked and the words changed.

 **HAVING FUN?**

That was ominous.

"* _It seems the gallery is out for blood._ " Chara said after they read the note aloud. Eve glanced at them when she heard them talking, but she was still on the other side if the room with a book in her hands. "* _Or it is messing with her."_

"Chara." Eve called to catch the spirit's attention. Chara then had to translate what she said next, "The Ladies cannot open doors for themselves."

That was a good confirmation. Frisk and Eve moved onto the next bookshelves, but then paused. There was a book that was sticking out. How had they not noticed that before? It was near where Frisk had woken up.

"* _There is a storybook drawn in crayon sticking out. It was not sticking out earlier. *Do you want to read it?_ "Chara asked.

Eve and Frisk shared a look. If it was not sticking out earlier, then why was it now? What caused it to do so? Would it be better to pull it out, or to push it back into place?

Eve reached forward and took the book. It appeared to be a children's book. The title was simple enough that Frisk could read it fine, although they didn't know what a Galette des Rois was. Eve opened the book, and all three humans watched as the pictures of the book began to move and speak on their own. They appeared to be children's drawings. It told the story of Careless Carrie (as the title denoted) sharing a birthday with her friends. Frisk understood the tiny high-pitched noises of the people without Eve or Chara having to translate. Carrie accidentally ate the coin that was supposed to be pulled out of the cake, however her friend discovered that it had really been a key to the study. After some contemplation, the friend took up a knife and ruefully commented on how she was just as careless as Carrie.

The last image had the now-blood-stained friend holding up a bloody key and saying how she would open the door now.

There was a click. Startled, Eve and Frisk both looked at the door at the sound. Eve closed the book and carefully placed it back on the shelf, pushing it in before she and Frisk walked to the door. Frisk turned the knob.

"* _The door is unlocked._ " Chara said. "* _What a curious book._ * _You wonder if the rest of the gallery is like this."_

"It is." Eve confirmed quietly. Together they pushed open the door and looked around before exiting. The hallway appeared to be empty. A single portrait of a blue vase with a flower in it was hanging on the wall between what appeared to be a diary on a table and an actual blue vase. Eve hurried over to the vase while Frisk glanced back into the room. Chara lingered by the bookshelf.

" _*The book is nowhere to be found_." They said.

Frisk and Chara joined the other human as she placed the rose into the vase. Instantly the flower bloomed with ten petals total, and Frisk felt completely rejuvenated. Their wounds were all gone. Frisk and Eve both checked Frisk's leg to make sure. It was all healed up. This didn't feel anything like a Save point, though.

" _Eternal Blessing._ " Eve read slowly from the plaque under the painting. Frisk felt a little soothed by this painting. Maybe not all of the art in the gallery was bad. Eve moved over to the diary next to write something in it.

"* _What is this?"_ Chara asked as they watched her write her name and Frisk's name in a space with slow graceful writing.

"It lets me know where I have been." Eve explained. Frisk wasn't paying much attention to them, though. They were looking at the red door on the far side of the room. They would probably guess that it was locked. The other side of the hall continued onwards, but the lighting was so bad that Frisk couldn't possibly guess what was down there.

" _*It gives the sensation of a Save point._ " Chara murmured as Frisk rejoined them. Eve looked at Chara with mild confusion. Frisk wasn't so sure she understood what Chara had said. Frisk pointed towards the open hallway questioningly. Eve nodded to them, and together they walked forward. Frisk wasn't used to travelling with another real human, so they worried about if they would be attacked. If this place didn't have monsters in it, did Frisk somehow escape the Underground? But why wouldn't the monsters use the Legendary Artifact if so? Could only humans use it?

Eve froze with a small gasp that drew Frisk back to attention. There was a person collapsed on the floor, his face hidden from view. Chara crossed their arms and floated on their back leisurely as Frisk and Eve rushed over to the man. His body trembled minutely and as the humans approached, he groaned.

"* _He is holding tightly onto a key. Do you want to take it?"_ Chara asked, floating over the man and tilting their head to get a better look. Frisk took the small key from his loose grip. Eve called out to him, but his response was pained and strained.

"He's in pain . . ." Eve murmured.

"* _Massage his shoulders._ " Chara recommended, grinning a little bit. Frisk ignored them. He was seriously hurt. They could see the blood darkening his jacket in places. He was injured.

"Rose?" They wondered. Chara asked Eve.

"Maybe the key?" She suggested. She held out her hand. Frisk curiously handed it to her. "I will go look!"

Frisk wasn't sure that was a good idea. It was dangerous. Admittedly Frisk wasn't much older than her, but they didn't want Eve to risk herself anymore than she already was. Before Frisk could speak and say they would go ahead, Eve was already hurrying off. Frisk had no choice but to wait with the man and hope. They kneeled down next to the man and gently touched his shoulders.

"Can you eat?" They asked as they pulled out a piece of candy. It wouldn't heal his physical wounds, but it may help to heal his Soul. The man only whimpered, his curly lilac fringe hanging in his face. Frisk wasn't sure what else to do. They glanced around the hallway and saw two pictures. One was actual artwork that didn't seem to be moving anytime soon, a swirl of various colors covering the canvas, while the other was a moving picture. It was just a red face on black with a tongue that moved.

"* _Its tongue keeps wiggling . . ."_ Chara pointed out with a tiny bit of disgust in their voice. It wasn't the most appealing picture. Frisk decided to get away from it before it bit them, or something worse. However as they were going back over to the man, pain ripped through their body. They gasped and curled in on themselves as it happened again. "* _Frisk?_ " Chara darted in front of the human, looking them over in confusion. Frisk couldn't answer. Eve was in trouble, they were sure.

They tried to put one foot in front of the other needing to go find the little girl. She was losing rose petals. It felt like someone was slashing them with a blade from the inside with each moment passing. Their body felt slicker, but they didn't know if it was from blood or sweat. They had to keep moving even though the world was swirling around them.

"* _Frisk!_ " Chara yelled as Frisk's legs buckled beneath them and they collapsed. They couldn't breathe. Something had cut their lung. They were going to die. It wasn't the first time, but it never is pleasant while dying. Especially in so brutal of a fashion. Eve would be all alone. Frisk teared up a bit and regretted not following her.

* * *

 _This wasn't the Save screen they were used to. That wasn't Chara's name there. Chara's head tilted a little as they examined the curious Save point. This must be Eve's Save. The girl herself didn't have enough determination to go back and fix things, but Chara and Frisk both did. They could try again. It would be interesting to see what would happen to Eve with her Soul connected to theirs. Would she remember?_

 _"This time," Chara told Frisk as they stood next to Chara, "do not let her go alone."_

 _Frisk nodded as they watched the solid form of Chara reach forward to Load up a Save. It had an image of both Eve's and Frisk's faces._

 **FILE 1 LOADED**

* * *

Frisk and Chara barely blinked as they found themselves back in front of the _Eternal Blessing_ painting with Eve right as she finished signing both her name and Frisk's name into the diary. She didn't seem to notice that Frisk was suddenly right behind her and not partway across the room examining their surroundings. Frisk waited to see if she would think anything strange from the Load (did she remember dying?) however Eve never said anything.

Frisk pointed towards the open hallway questioningly. Eve nodded to them, and together they once again walked forward. This time Frisk was more prepared for Eve's gasp at the sight of the collapsed man. He looked to be in a little less pain than the last time Frisk saw him. His rose must actually be in danger.

"* _He is holding tightly onto a key. Do you want to take it?"_ Chara asked again, floating around the man and emitting a vaguely bored aura. Frisk took the small key from his loose grip. Eve called out to him, but his response was pained and strained.

"He's in pain . . ." Eve murmured.

"* _Try to massage his shoulders._ " Chara recommended again. And again Frisk ignored them. They pointed back towards the door on the other side of the hallway.

"His rose." They suggested.

"The key may help." Eve understood. She reached to take it from them, but Frisk tugged it away with a shake of their head. Eve gave them a confused look. "I can go . . ."

Frisk reached forward and took her hand gently in theirs. Their eyes were insistent but sympathetic as they said, "I don't want you to get hurt."

Chara scoffed even as they repeated what Frisk said..

Eve stared at Frisk with wide eyes before her cheeks turned a little pink and she looked away, ducking her head. "Someone should stay with him. He's hurt."

"Go together. Quickly." Frisk insisted, and gave a tug of her hand. Eve gave in and followed as Frisk hurried back down the hallway to the door. They didn't know what was on the other side, but it had managed to kill Eve. They quietly opened the door fully expecting another piece of art to attack . . . but the room was empty. They pushed the door open wider and the children entered.

Eve looked around herself before she walked over to a single vase in the room. There was a piece of paper taped on either side of the vase. "The papers look like the ones I saw earlier." She told them quietly. "When I got my rose."

"You didn't always have it?" Frisk asked.

She shook her head. "I got it when I . . . entered this place."

"* _So you are not from here."_ Chara glanced into the vase. " _*There is no water left in the vase._ " So it wouldn't be helpful to them. There was another door that seemed to lead into a small room, but for the moment they avoided that. Together Frisk and Eve peeked around the corner only to find a single name plaque. Eve read it aloud for them.

" _The_ _Lady in Blue._ " She glanced sharply at Frisk. "Another Lady." That must have been what killed Eve. Most likely in that tiny room. Frisk knelt down on the floor and picked up some stray blue petals. They felt warm at the touch and hauntingly beautiful. They didn't know blue roses even existed.

" _*There are blue petals on the ground._ " Chara reached to touch the petal and seemed surprised that they were able to feel it. They whipped their hand back quickly. "* _There is blood on the floor too._ " They pointed at the red-on-red that was a small splatter of blood. It must have been from the man.

"We have to hurry." Eve told them, already moving towards the final door in the room. Frisk clutched the small key in their hand as they followed her and unlocked the door to the room. Inside was a cramped space with what appeared to be some kind of tent artwork and a window. They could hear a strange sound that they were reluctant to pursue.

" _*It sounds like flowers being plucked._ " Chara filled in the thought. Frisk and Eve walked forward on nervous feet to peer around the corner. The Lady in Blue held a blue rose, slowly and cheerfully plucking the petals from it. It only had a few petals left. Eve gasped in horror at the sight, attracting the Lady's attention. She scowled at them, but didn't move to attack yet. Frisk could see how she wanted to, though.

Frisk had a plan. They gently pushed Eve backwards with a nod to her. They would handle this. Eve looked confused. Chara scooted forward to see what Frisk had planned.

Frisk stepped forward, making sure the Lady's attention was on them, before they turned their face into their shoulder and gazed at the Lady demurely. Chara reluctantly said, " _*Frisk used Flirt._ " It didn't seem to have an effect, but the Lady wasn't attacking yet. They pushed the edge of their sleeve off of their shoulder and brought a fist to their mouth, lowering their eyelashes to gaze at the Lady through them. The Lady seemed more confused, no longer scowling.

"* _This is not working._ " Chara warned, annoyed.

Maybe, Frisk thought, the Lady just wasn't attracted to feminine appeal. They decided to try masculine, then. They unbuttoned the top button of their shorts and slowly pushed up their sweater to reveal some skin. The Lady stared, her mouth dropping open a bit at the sight as Frisk flicked their head and spread their legs. They lifted their chin and gave her a slow crooked smile, just as they had seen models on television doing.

The Lady seemed to blush, her painted cheeks turning a muddled pink as she turned away from the sight even though her eyes couldn't stop drifting back to Frisk. She tossed the flower at them as a prize, which Frisk gladly caught. They winked at the Lady in thanks, and the Lady grinned.

"* _Flee._ " Chara commanded, and both Frisk and Eve ran for the door. The Lady realized quickly what had just happened and growled furiously, clawing after them. However Frisk and Eve were already through the door, slamming it shut. The Lady pounded on the door in anger, however Eve and Frisk knew they were safe.

"* _Disgusting_." Chara scolded Frisk as they buttoned up their shorts properly. Eve's face was also red, her hands coming to her cheeks to feel how hot they were. "* _Eve wonders how you can be like that._ " Chara narrated for her, surprising Frisk a little bit.

"No! I. . ." Whatever Eve had been about to say was interrupted by the sound of glass shattering. Both children gasped, jumping in horror as the Lady in Blue burst through the window and proceeded to come after them again. She was significantly faster than the Lady in Red. Frisk grabbed Eve's hand and ran for the door. Eve let out a small scared noise as the Lady's hand almost caught her ankle, but Frisk shoved Eve through the open door and dove through after her, slamming the door shut. The Lady screeched in fury. This time she didn't have a window to bust through.

"Vase." Frisk pointed so Chara wouldn't need to translate and walked over to the vase while Eve recovered her breath. She leaned against the wall near the vase as Frisk placed the flower in the water. The blue rose returned to health right away, it's petals blooming cheerfully. Frisk gave a small relieved sigh at the sight as they pulled it back out of the vase to show Eve. She gave a small smile as well before the two of them went to go find the man.

He was still collapsed on the floor, but no longer shaking. Eve kneeled near him and touched his shoulder. He moaned a little and shakily pushed himself up with his hands, confusion on his face. His grey eyes were a little bleary as he murmured to himself. Frisk glanced at Chara for a translation, but the man threw himself to his feet and away from Eve suddenly, shouting. Eve backed up so that she was next to Frisk, alarmed.

"* _He thought we were going to hurt him._ " Chara explained quickly as the man seemed to calm down. "* _Are you from the gallery? He says."_

Eve nodded. The man's face relaxed, relief prominent in his features. He ran his hand over his face in an effort to wipe away some of the sweat there. "So you are!" He breathed, smiling. "Oh, thank heavens! There are people here besides me!"

Frisk held out the blue rose to him, and the man seemed surprised but pleased the sight. His next words were clearly a thank you as he took the rose from Frisk and held it close. He seemed to have a bit more of a glow to his skin now that he held the rose, but Frisk wasn't sure if that was just their imagination or not. They motioned over to the wall and sat down.

"* _Frisk thinks we should rest._ " Chara told Eve, and the girl seemed to like the idea. She joined Frisk on the floor, sighing as she leaned against the wall. The man joined them on Frisk's other side.

"Are you two all alone?" He asked. They both nodded, but Eve held up three fingers. "Three!" The man cried. "There is a third person? Where are they? Are they alright?" He seemed agitated at the thought of someone missing. Eve pointed at Chara where they floated idly near the group. The man frowned, clearly not seeing Chara.

"I think only you and I can see them." Frisk told Eve gently. "Because we share your rose." Eve blinked in surprise. The man seemed even more startled.

"You're speaking a different language!" He announced. "You no speak this?" He asked in broken speech as he attempted to speak Frisk's language. At least they vaguely understood him. Chara grinned a little in amusement. Frisk shrugged and shook their head.

"You can understand it?" The man asked Eve. Eve shook her head as well.

"Chara tells me." She explained.

"Chara?"

"The ghost that follows Frisk. You can't see-"

"* _Excuse me!"_ Chara didn't finish their translation of what Eve said as they butted in, irritated. Eve startled at the emotion in their voice. " _*They/Them pronouns. We don't like being called that."_

Eve only seemed more confused. She fretted a little, understanding she had upset Chara and possibly Frisk, and looked to her new friend for help. Frisk smiled helplessly at her and nodded in agreement to what Chara said.

"What's the matter?" The man asked, completely lost but seeing the distress on Eve's face. He was very obviously missing a part of the conversation. Eve turned to the man and explained what had just happened and her confusion. "Ohh!" He breathed, understanding.

"* _He's explaining it to her._ " Chara told Frisk instead of translating. " _*At least he understands._ "

"Okay." Eve said, still appearing a little unsure but understanding that this was how things were supposed to be. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Frisk smiled at her.

"So there really is a, um, ghost here?" The man asked, perturbed. The children nodded. "Okay." He decided to change the subject. "Do either of you have any idea what is happening?"

Frisk shook their head. "We appeared here from . . . a very different place than either of you." They smiled a little helplessly. "I doubt our story will be . . . a lot of help."

"What?" The man asked.

"* _Eve. You need to translate for him as well._ " Chara told the little girl.

"I don't understand everything, though." She warned.

"Whatever you can understand." Frisk told her. Eve nodded and told the man what Frisk had said. Amusingly enough, Frisk could see how the girl was going to find it tedious to also translate. This situation was comical.

"What do you mean?" The man asked when he was finally informed of the set-up. Frisk just shook their head and motioned to Eve to talk instead.

"* _Our story will not make much sense to you. Just tell your story._ " Chara told her.

Eve smoothed her skirt out for something to do with her hands as she explained what had happened to her. Eve had been visiting an art gallery with her parents to see the Guertena exhibit. She had gone off ahead of her parents when suddenly everyone disappeared. She had searched for someone, but the lights went out and painted words appeared telling her to go downstairs. When she had, she was led towards a painting that she went into, and she found herself in the strange gallery they were in now.

"Things keep coming to life and attacking me." She didn't need to explain that she was scared. The slight tremble to her hands was obvious enough. Frisk placed a soothing hand on her shoulder and rubbed it.

The man sighed, saddened with a sympathetic gaze for Eve. "So I see. . . You don't have any clue how things got to this point either. It would seem we wound up in very similar situations, I have to say . . ." He held up his rose, gazing at the petals. Frisk could see that his flower also had ten petals. "Even down to these roses. Wounds appear on me when my rose loses its petals . . ." He closed his eyes and shook his head a bit to clear whatever thought he was having from it. "I thought I was a goner there . . . Thank you for getting it back." He placed his rose into the pocket of his jacket. The torn thing was more of a trench coat than a jacket with pockets deep enough to carry a couple of things. It appeared thin and worn, though, as if he had worn it a lot.

"* _Smells like cigarettes._ " Chara commented, wrinkling their nose just a little bit.

"Now then, what about you? Do you have a rose?" The man asked Frisk.

"They share a rose with me." Eve explained.

"What! How can that be?" The man asked, shocked. Both children shrugged, not understanding either. "My, that seems awfully dangerous. Two people sharing one rose. You two will need to be extremely careful . . ." He shot them a concerned look before he glanced up and down the hallway. "Now, first things first. We'd better find a way out. I think I'll go mad if I stay in this dreadful place for too long."

He ran his hand again over his face, weariness making itself present there. Frisk felt their legs throb in understanding. At least in this place the art wasn't actively pursuing them. And it was inside and warmer than either Waterfall or Snowdin. They suddenly missed Toriel and the warmth of her home and food. They shook their head firmly. No, they couldn't think of that right now. They had a lot of stuff they needed to do! And it looked like they needed to get these two back home as well. Maybe along the way Frisk would be able to find the Legendary Artifact again. After all, it looked like it may belong in a gallery like this.

"Ah, I still haven't asked either of you your names. My, that was rude of me!" The man suddenly blurted out, remembering. Chara had started to take on a more mocking tone as they translated what the man was saying. Frisk wasn't sure if the man was actually speaking with such an effeminate tone or if it was just Chara being rude. "Well, my name's Garry. And you are?"

"I am Eve." Eve introduced politely. "And this is Frisk and Chara."

"Frisk and Eve! And, uh, Chara is the . . . ghost?"

"Yes." The girl nodded.

Garry gave them both a quick smile, his eyes darting around to look for Chara, before he stepped away from them momentarily to murmur to himself. Chara grinned a little mischievously as they translated what he clearly hadn't wanted either of the children to hear. "I can't very well leave children to wander into danger, no, no." He turned back to the children quickly. "So I'll go with you both! Okay?" He smiled confidently. "Now, let's go!"

Frisk and Eve smiled back as Garry took the lead, walking down the one part of the hallway none of them had explored yet. However as he passed in front of the moving painting, the painting spat at him. Garry threw himself backwards to avoid the spit, falling down and shrieking in shock.

"Are you alright?" Eve asked, stepping forward to help him. Garry didn't respond for a moment before he scrambled to his feet. His cheeks were slightly red as he dusted himself off. "I . . . I was just a bit startled! Really, that's all it was!"

"* _Real convincing._ " Chara muttered. "* _Both of you must feel so protected right now._ " Frisk and Eve pretended not to hear.

"Anywayyy . . ." Garry continued quickly to recover from his embarrassing moment, "Let's keep going, and look out for such bizarre things as that!"

"* _You considered trying to comfort him. But then thought better of it._ " Chara said. Eve huffed a tiny laugh, gazing at Frisk with some amusement. Frisk would've laughed too, but thought it better not to mess with Garry when he couldn't even hear Chara or understand Frisk. The three of them walked around the small puddle of spit left on the ground and eyed the painting warily as they entered the room at the end of the hallway. There was a headless black statue with a blue tie blocking the doorway. It appeared to be very heavy. Frisk doubted they would be able to move it if they tried.

Eve didn't look like she wanted to get near the thing, but Frisk tapped on the statue. It felt like it was made of metal. They didn't understand why it was headless. "Be careful." Eve warned quietly.

"* _This statue will not come to life._ " Chara predicted. Frisk explained to Eve how Chara seemed to have the ability to sometimes predict the near future. Chara scoffed after they had translated that but didn't deny it. At Garry's questioning look, Eve also told Garry.

"My, that sounds like a useful ability." He shot the statue an uneasy glance. "Although . . . I'm not sure I like the idea that these things can also come to life. Metal statues . . ." He noticed that Eve was looking more uncomfortable at his thoughts and quickly said, "Anyway, what a lousy place for this thing. Eve, Frisk, step back a tad, will you?" Eve and Frisk did as they were asked, and Garry went around to the side of the statue to push. "And . . . heave!" All three children gaped as the statue scraped across the floor and out of the way of the door. Garry sighed and wiped his forehead. "Ta-dah! Now we can proceed!" He turned back to them. "All right, let's go!"

"* _Wow. Maybe he will be useful._ " Chara said, impressed as both Eve and Frisk thanked Garry. " _*At least we did not need to find a switch._ "

The group of four entered the next room with high spirits. Frisk had to blink at the sudden change in color scheme. Now the walls and floor were all grey, rather than red. There were two large black hands sticking out of the ground and wiggling their fingers along with two paintings of a man and woman dressed for a wedding and appearing disheartened. Eve and Garry walked over to one of the hands to read the name plates aloud.

" _Grieving Bride's Left Hand._ " Garry read before glancing at the other hand's nameplate. "And _Grieving Bride's Right Hand._ How curious."

" _Grieving Bride._ " Eve read slowly as she examined the portrait. Frisk felt their heart clench at the sight of the tears on the bride's face. Why was she so sad? Even the beautiful pink bouquet she was carrying seemed to wilt. They didn't need to read the other painting's description to know this was the _Grieving Groom_.

"I wonder what happened?" Garry asked. "Why would Guertena paint something like this?"

"* _More puzzles. At least we have become good at those._ " Chara mused.

"How?" Eve asked, and it took Chara a moment to realize she was talking to them. Garry hummed in question as he walked a bit forward to go into the next part of the room, but realized that the children weren't quite with him yet.

"Where we come from . . . we had to become good at puzzles." Frisk explained as they rejoined Garry. They pointed out a diary on the far side of the room, so the four of them went over. "There are a lot of puzzles here, I'm guessing."

"Yes." Eve agreed.

"I can't say I'm great at puzzles," Garry informed them, "but I'm not against trying."

"We have to." Eve wrote down all three of their names in the book. Frisk felt something akin to a Save occur.

What a strange world.


	2. Labyrinth

**A/N: I can't believe this entire chapter takes place in one damn room. I have no control, apparently.**

 **Also I want to say thank you for my beta joviamod as well as qin-ying who is doing absolutely gorgeous artwork for this story! When they are completed and she has given me permission, I will be try to post a link! Please go and check out her amazing art in the meantime at qin-ying's tumblr!**

* * *

They decided to explore the room for any possible hints as to where to go first. Frisk could already see at least two doors. They decided to forego entering any of the doors until they had looked around. They turned a corner and jolted to a stop at the sight of multiple eyes springing up around the floor. Garry let out a yell.

"What is _THAT_?! Gross is what!" The eyes glanced at him before returning to just looking around. There didn't seem to be a particular pattern to them. Frisk looked at their companions before going ahead and moving forward to look at the eyes. "Eve, watch your skirt." Garry warned as some of the eyes turned towards Eve. They were perfectly level to look up her skirt. Eve quickly gathered the cloth of her skirt up so nothing would be able to see her underwear.

The eyes didn't seem to take much notice of them as they picked their way through the group of them. They were almost as big as Frisk's feet. Chara got in close to one of them and made to poke it, but their finger went through. They frowned.

" _*Frisk. You should step on one._ "

"Look." Frisk said instead, and pointed at one of the eyes. It seemed to be struggling to keep its eyelid open. The sclera was bloodshot and watery.

"D . . . Does this lone eye have a congestion problem?" Garry murmured.

"* _Maybe all of the eyes need to be poked._ " Chara continued.

"I don't think so." Eve told them as she passed by Chara's floating form. She went over to the paintings on the far side of the room instead. Garry stepped over one of the eyes and followed after her while Frisk continued to look around.

"Eye drops?" They suggested, looking at Garry. Maybe he had something that could help the poor eye on him. It didn't seem right to let the poor thing suffer. Frisk only had a couple of food items in their inventory at the moment.

"I don't carry stuff like that around, sorry." Garry's eyes roved over the paintings. These were the smallest ones Frisk had seen yet in this place. There was one of a girl, one of what looked to be an iceberg, a large white snake, and a painting of some scenery.

"* _There is a hole in the snake's eye._ " Chara pointed out.

"There is!" Eve agreed, showing Garry the hole.

"If this is a puzzle, then perhaps we're to find what goes here?" He suggested.

"* _Or the congested eye goes there._ " Chara joked. Frisk didn't think they were being particularly helpful, but at least they seemed entertained. Frisk liked when Chara was being active like this. They didn't get to see them cheerful at times.

"Let's look around some more." Garry motioned for them to follow. There was another door when they turned the corner, and finally a dead end with a frightening blue and black painting. It had sharp lines for teeth and a mouth and googly eyes that moved in opposite directions. Frisk shuddered a little bit at the sight, but found themselves oddly missing Undyne. She had sharp teeth, but at least she wasn't this creepy. It didn't even look like a painting.

The painting caught sight of them and giggled to itself. It was staring at Eve's rose. "Flowers . . . flowers're nice . . . Give me that there flower and I'll let you through . . . ehehe . . . your flower, pretty please?"

"* _Give red rose?_ " Chara asked Eve.

"Don't." Frisk warned. Eve shook her head and backed away from the painting.

"Aw, I'm begging you . . . I just wanna have a sniffffff." The painting whined.

"The answer is no." Garry told the painting as Eve shook her head again.

"I just want it for a li'l bit." The painting chuckled, and then began to cackle madly. The humans had to cover their ears as the laughter reverberated off of the walls of the room. They quickly turned the corner to stand in front of the side door.

"That thing is insane." Garry shook his head as the last of the laughter faded.

"Yeah." Eve agreed.

"Should we try the door?" Frisk suggested, their hand already on the knob.

"I'm not sure we have much of a choice." Garry leaned forward to look down the hallway. "It appears as if we've gone a full circle. One of these rooms has to lead somewhere."

"At least nothing is chasing us." Eve said, trying to lighten the mood a bit.

"Yeah, there's that."

Frisk pushed open the door and the four of them entered into a new room. It was covered with stools and canvases. Each canvas had a picture of a little blue bottle on it, and when Frisk stood on their tiptoes they could see a painting hung up on the opposite wall depicting the same thing. However it had an eerie bleeding red background. Was that supposed to represent something?

"* _There is a bottle on this table._ " Chara said as they drift over the easels to stand where the bottle was. It wasn't too far into the room, but they couldn't climb over the stools. They had to push them. The easels, despite appearing like they should move, could not be pushed.

"We need to push." Frisk said, however Chara wasn't close enough to translate so their companions didn't understand. Frisk demonstrated by pushing one of the stools. It slid easily across the room. They needed to make a path over to Chara.

Eve and Garry understood that much, and so they started pushing as well. It took a bit of time to figure out how to create the right path across the room, but eventually it was cleared enough so all three of them could reach Chara. Frisk picked up the tiny blue bottle from the table.

"* _You got some eye drops._ " Chara tapped the bottle without noise.

"The eye." Eve said. "We can help it."

"I wonder what good that will do." Garry pondered. Frisk placed the eye drops into their inventory. They kept an eye out for any kind of tricks or attacks as they exited the room unharassed. That had seemed almost too easy. Maybe they were too used to monsters appearing and attacking them. They almost missed it. Everything here felt . . . false and dead despite the movements. The Underground had been full of life and music. There was an eerie music playing faintly somewhere. Frisk wasn't sure if the others could hear it.

They hurried back out into the hallways and over to the side of the room with the eyes on it. Eve gathered her skirts again as they stepped around some of the eyes to get over to the congested eye. Frisk crouched next to it.

"* _The congested eye is looking your way._ " Chara informed them. Frisk stared back at it unblinkingly. The two continued to stare at each other for a long moment.

" . . . Um, Frisk? What are you doing?" Garry asked. Frisk blinked and proceeded to apply eye drops to the eye. The liquid covered the eye, making it blink a couple times before the red faded away and the congestion was cured. Frisk thought it looked much happier now. It closed its eyelids and flattened itself to the floor, moving under the feet and down the hall. The humans glanced at each other before hurrying after it, hopping and dodging around the other eyes until they found the cured one.

"* _The eye you gave the eye drops to is staring intently at the wall."_ Chara leaned forward to look better at the wall. " _*The wall is a slightly different color._ "

The eye disappeared back into the ground. Garry patted the wall a bit before he pushed. Frisk and Eve pushed as well and the wall gave way to reveal a secret passage.

"A-ha!" Garry cheered. It was too dark to see well, however the passage was small and soon they found the end of it. Something small bumped against Eve's foot and rolled a bit. She dove to catch it and held it up to the little light they had. Frisk pulled out their cell phone for a bit more light. It was a red glass ball.

"You have a mobile?" Eve asked them.

Frisk nodded, having completely forgot about it, and looked at the screen. They didn't have any bars. They showed their friends.

"Lovely." Garry sighed. "Well, I'm not sure who we would call anyway . . . I doubt the police can find this place."

Eve stared at the glass ball in her hand. In the light of the cell phone, Frisk could see the stricken look on her face. They quickly placed their hands on her shoulders, causing her to look up. Frisk smiled reassuringly, their thumbs stroking Eve's collarbones. They had been comforted in such a way when they had been her age. Eve's face softened a little, appreciating the effort.

Garry seemed to realize his words had disheartened the children, so he placed a hand on each of their heads, also smiling to reassure them. "Don't worry. We'll get out of here in no time."

"* _He's sooo dependable."_ Chara muttered, their voice higher pitched to show their sarcasm.

Frisk again ignored them. It was necessary with Chara to ignore them at times. They were a little mean-spirited and liked to mock kind people. Frisk figured this out when Chara had mocked Papyrus. However Frisk also knew that Chara used sarcasm to hide their growing appreciation for people. It was nice to see that they were growing a little fond of their company. Then again, Chara and Frisk hadn't stayed this long with people in a while.

"This ball," Eve told them quietly, "may be the snake's eye?"

"Oh, yes, that makes sense." Garry walked back towards the exit and glanced around before motioning for the children to follow. It seemed nothing was trying to attack still. At least it didn't appear like anything could come to life and attack them.

"* _You feel as if this reprieve will not last long._ " Chara murmured. Eve glanced at Chara curiously, either not knowing what they had said or not understanding, but neither of the other humans explained.

They returned back to the picture of the large white snake. It loomed over them, not necessarily threatening but quiet and poised. Almost as if it was waiting to strike. Eve placed the glass orb into the eye and pressed it in. Something dinged, and Garry startled as the small painting of some scenery fell down.

"* _There is writing on the back of the frame._ " Chara pointed out.

"'Behind the big tree' . . ." Eve read.

"What big tree?" Garry questioned.

"Another room." Frisk suggested. There was only one other door they had seen in this room. They circled back around to the front and entered a new room only to discover it covered with walls. The plaque on the wall, read by Garry, said that it was a labyrinth.

"Oh dear." Eve murmured, worried.

"I have a bad feeling that we will not be alone in that maze." Garry said. "Can Chara see?"

Chara was already at the top of the wall glancing around. The ceiling was far too low for them to see very well. They kicked their feet idly and called down, "* _There are things moving. *It is too dark to see very far._ "

"We'll need to be careful, then." Garry turned to the children. "Stay close you two, okay?" They nodded and followed close behind Garry as he entered the maze. Eve reached forward to hold onto the back of his jacket and held her hand out to Frisk. Frisk took it, but was paying closer attention to their surroundings. There was enough room between each of the walls of the maze that two of them could stand side-by-side, however it was too dark to see further than a couple meters in front of them. They were reminded of the Underground and suddenly missed the soft blue light of Waterfall.

Within the maze they could hear the heavy tapping of footfalls. They sounded like metal or ceramic against the hard floors of the room. They couldn't pinpoint where the sound was coming from. They could tell there were more than one, though. They swallowed, a bit nervous in the dark atmosphere. The room felt suffocating. If they were like that statue from earlier, than a single grip could hurt or kill them. Frisk would rather not have to Load again if they could help it. Dying wasn't fun.

"That sound is coming closer." Eve whispered, her eyes large with fear. They turned a corner and saw a dark figure coming at them with rapid steps. Frisk's skin jumped at the sight of the headless creature. "Garry . . . !"

"This way!" He hissed, reaching back to grab Eve's hand and hurrying them around a different corner. The three of them pressed themselves back against the wall, hoping the gloom would hide them even from the statues. The metal statue scraped its way slowly past them, pausing so close Garry could've reached out to touch it. Instead the three froze. Only Chara made any movement, getting in close to gaze at the statue curiously. Frisk could hear their heart pulsing in their ears. Their companions' breathing sounded almost too loud. Eve's grip in Frisk's hand was tight.

Finally the statue moved on. The humans didn't risk moving until it had turned a corner, though. Even though it was gone, they could easily hear another one approaching. Frisk took the lead, pressing a hand to the wall to their right and following it deeper into the maze. The sound of the statues faded. Garry and Eve tried to keep their footsteps light as they turned into a new area.

"Oh no." Eve whispered as the area showed a dead end. They were boxed in.

"* _There's a paper here on the wall."_ Chara said.

"'There's a trick to solving mazes'," Garry read, "'Hug the right hand side and you'll reach the end eventually.' Not a bad trick . . . But that doesn't help the ceiling being far too low for comfort." He glanced over his shoulder at the one exit to this part of the maze there was. "Not to mention those weird things loitering around . . . gives me the creeps." He turned to his companions. "Be careful not to get trapped between them, okay, Eve? Frisk?"

"Yes." Eve said, nodding. Frisk nodded as well. They certainly weren't about to give those things the chance to grab them.

The maze seemed almost endless, although a few times they managed to find the walls of the room. The low ceiling and the maze seemed to close in on them, making Frisk feel claustrophobic. They wanted to get out of the room as quickly as possible. They had the feeling that the things in the room were aware there were people with them, although they couldn't find them yet. Frisk couldn't guess how many there were in the maze with them, or if there were any other dangers.

"* _There are red spots on the floor._ " Chara pointed out as they hurried around another corner. " _*Blood? Or paint?"_

"Paint." Frisk replied, if only to make sure Chara wouldn't bother Eve. The girl seemed to be getting more and more nervous the longer they stayed in the maze. Frisk sympathized. Chara wasn't helping.

"We don't even know what we're looking for in here." Garry muttered.

"There!" Eve pointed. On the far side of the room was an easel with words on it. They rushed over. Frisk looked over their shoulders to make sure nothing was coming as the little girl read, "'Check directly south from the red paint.' Um, Chara, where did you see the paint?" She asked. She seemed relieved to learn that it really was paint and not blood.

"* _A couple of places had red paint._ " Chara said. "* _I cannot recall where_."

"Then we need to look." Garry said. "I think those things are coming closer again." This time he didn't hesitate to take Eve's hand as he rushed them through the maze.

"* _Garry looks agitated._ " Chara said from behind Frisk, following on foot instead of floating now. " _*You feel like the maze is closing in on you._ " Frisk shuddered and looked at the walls nervously. Earlier they looked like they could fit at least two people side-by-side, but now it seemed like they had to go in a straight line. Were they imagining things? Frisk just hoped that it was the atmosphere playing tricks on them.

"There's a spot!" Eve cried softly, her finger pointing out a splatter of red on the floor. It was almost a shock of color in the grey room. Frisk shook their head to dispel the thought. Garry released Eve's hand briefly to go directly south of the spot, however there was nothing there. He hurried back to them.

"Next one." He told them.

"Hide!" Frisk said as they spotted two mannequins coming around the corners on opposite sides of the maze. They would get trapped between them at this rate. Eve squeaked at the sight, freezing as the mannequins got closer. "There!" Frisk grabbed Garry's sleeve to catch his attention. There was a gap in the walls they could duck through, but they had to run quickly. The mannequins growled a bit, sensing them. Their arms came up to attack.

Garry scooped Eve up swiftly and cried, "Run!" Chara led the way forward, dodging out away from the mannequin as Frisk ducked under its grip to pass through the gap. Garry spun away from the mannequin with a yelp, keeping Eve away from the art's grip as he barely slipped past them and through the gap in the wall. Frisk distinctly heard the sound of clothing ripping, but they didn't stop as they ran along the wall until they were back to the front of the room. The mannequins seemed agitated now.

"There's the door!" Eve cried. Despite having not found the secret of the maze yet, they all dashed through the door and back out into the hallway. Frisk made sure to slam the door shut as Garry let Eve down and hunched over, panting. Eve clenched her rose tightly in her hand, clearly a bit shaken.

"That was . . . too close." He panted.

"Are you hurt?" Frisk asked, moving towards him. They pushed aside his coat to reveal that his shirt was a bit torn. There was blood already seeping from the wound.

"I'm fine, Frisk. That thing's hand only got me a bit." Garry smiled, reassuring them with a pat on the head. Frisk lifted up the side of his shirt for a better look, however. It looked like it stung. They were tempted to kiss it to make it better, but Garry was already stumbling away. "F-Frisk! M-my, you sure are bold!" His cheeks were slightly pink, but he seemed more confused than upset. Now that Frisk thought about it, Garry was pretty cute all flustered like that. Frisk couldn't help the mischievous smile that began to bloom across their face.

"* _The maze._ " Chara reminded impatiently, interrupting Frisk's teasing. They could flirt later.

"O-oh right!" Eve agreed. "We need to . . . go back in there . . ." She stared at the door reluctantly.

"I'll go." Frisk shook their head.

"What! No, no, I can't allow a child to go into such a dangerous place alone." Garry said as he pulled out his rose to check on it. A single petal had fallen off.

"Frisk." Eve protested softly.

"I am . . . used to danger." They told their companions with a smile. "And I'm . . . small and quiet. I'll be right back."

"No, Frisk . . . !" Garry tried to protest again, but Frisk and Chara had already reentered the maze room. The mannequins seemed to have calmed down now, but Frisk could still hear them moving in the gloom. They heard the door open behind them and saw Garry peek in and hiss their name, but Frisk was already ducking around the first bend in the maze. They kept their eyes to the floor and their hand on the left wall so as to lead them deeper into the maze. They trusted Chara to let them know if a mannequin was coming.

They found another red spot rather quickly and followed it due south to a spot tucked between the walls. Frisk felt like they could barely squeeze in there. Were the walls really that close to each other? Their skin was crawling as they felt the wall.

"* _A mannequin is coming._ " Chara hissed. Frisk's fingers found something then. "* _There is a switch on the wall._ _Press it?"_ Frisk took the risk and pressed the switch. There was a strange sound outside, almost like something heavy was dragging. It sounded more like rock than like metal. Frisk ran for the exit, dodging the single mannequin that had gotten close. They were too slow to catch a human who had battled monsters a number of times.

Frisk quickly threw open the door, almost slamming Garry in the face with it and running into Eve, before they shut the door swiftly. "You're okay!" Eve breathed, visibly relaxing.

"Frisk, please don't do things like that!" Garry scolded, a bit panicked. He seemed to startle Eve as he raised his voice. "It's extremely dangerous! What would happen if you were attacked in there?"

Frisk stared at him, confused. "But . . ."

Garry took a breath, wiping at his face. "No . . . No, I apologize. I shouldn't have shouted like that." He straightened a little and crossed his arms some. Frisk suddenly realized that Garry was an adult and older than them by a number of years. He appeared too young to be a father, though. He reminded Frisk of the people their mother scoffed at on the street for being "art students" and such. Garry seemed to think better of his position and instead crouched some to get onto Frisk's eye level, holding their shoulders gently but insistently. "Frisk, you have to remember that when you put yourself in danger, you're also putting Eve in danger. You two share a flower, don't you?"

Frisk had forgotten that. They looked at Eve with slight horror. They had become so lax with their life that they hadn't even considered the risk they gave Eve. The sensation of their body being ripped apart as Eve's flower was torn to shreds still tingled across their skin. Chara was silent next to Eve, watching them.

" . . . I'm sorry." Frisk murmured, lowering their eyes.

"It's okay." Eve whispered back. She reached forward to touch Frisk's arm in forgiveness as Garry released the younger human.

"Good. Now that we have that all cleared up and we've all decided to stay together . . . let's go see what you managed to do, Frisk. The sound had come from over here." Garry smiled and waved his hand for them to follow. The children glanced at each other before doing so, their spirits a bit more raised as the worry passed.

They walked back towards the diary to discover that there was a new door that hadn't been there before. Eve made to open it, but Frisk called to her and pointed at the diary. It would be better to make a Save, they thought, so that they wouldn't need to do the maze all over again if they died.

"I already wrote in it, though." Eve protested, confused.

"* _You thought it would be safer to sign again._ " Chara told her. Like much of Chara's predictions, Eve seemed to decide that they were right. She walked back over to the diary and signed her name as well as Frisk's. Instead of signing Garry's, however, she offered him the feather quill. Garry gave her an amused smile, but took the quill to write his signature near Eve's careful and perfect writing. Unlike her's, Garry's writing was more of a scrawl, but the cursive seemed to fit the diary better than print.

Garry replaced the quill into the inkwell and together they entered the new room. It was a long room that appeared to only have four sculptures in it. Frisk couldn't seen anything that looked like it might attack them -like paintings, perhaps- but they were quickly learning not to trust this place. They had never seen art like this. It was surreal and creepy.

" _Wine Sofa_." Eve read from the nameplate of the first sculpture they found.

"* _It is a red wine glass cut diagonally, and with a red cushion inside._ " Chara described. "* _You thought it looked like it would be fun to sit in._ "

"That doesn't look like very comfortable sitting . . ." Garry protested. Frisk attempted to touch the pillow, but then decided against it. This was artwork, after all, and their parents always said that art shouldn't be touched. Besides, Garry and Eve weren't touching it.

The lights flickered suddenly and dimmed, causing the three of them to freeze. They tensed, waiting for something to happen, but the lights soon flickered back on. They shot each other confused looks. Maybe there was just bad wiring in the room? They moved onto the next sculpture.

This one was a strange bust that appeared to be a person with their brain leaking from their head. Eve didn't know the word, so Garry read out, " _Melancholy_. Melancholy, huh? Well really, who wouldn't be in this place?"

"It's creepy." Eve noted decidedly. The lights flickered out again. When they were back on, the group moved onto the next statue. This one was called "Puzzle" and it was a half-collapsed skeleton painted all different colors. "Are they . . . ?" The little girl asked, hesitant to look too closely at the bones.

"These aren't real bones, okay Eve?" Garry soothed her.

"They remind me of my friends." Frisk said before they could consider their words. They found themselves kind of missing Papyrus and Sans's antics. Sans's puns and Papyrus's optimism would be wonderful to have in this dreadful place.

"How so?" Eve asked, curious to hear anything about Frisk. They were the only one who hadn't told their story, after all.

Frisk hesitated. Their story was long and complicated, after all. They were fairly sure that they weren't in their world anymore, and even if they were these people wouldn't know about monsters. Frisk had only recently learned about monsters, after all.

Instead they shrugged. "I have skeleton friends." They wandered over towards the last sculpture. Garry and Eve both shot each other confused looks and didn't have a chance to ask further questions before Frisk was prompting them with the description of the last sculpture.

"* _It is a tree sculpture that vaguely resembles a person._ " Chara murmured, dancing around the tree with interest.

" _Feeling_. This must be the tree clue." Eve said.

"You gotta be pretty clever to come up with this stuff . . ." He seemed somewhat impressed with the sculpture, however there was a hint of confusion as well. Frisk sympathized; they didn't understand it either. What were they supposed to be feeling? "What are we supposed to look for?" Garry glanced among the leaves the of tree. Frisk and Eve both moved to other parts of the tree, searching as well. Eve climbed onto her tiptoes, straining to see a bit higher.

"* _Something gleams amid the leaves._ " Chara pointed for Eve. She managed to snatch it from the leaves and showed her companions. It was a silver ring.

"Isn't this . . . a wedding ring?" Garry gasped, baffled. "Now what would this be doing here?"

"* _Was there not a bride and groom earlier?_ " Chara hinted.

Frisk nodded. "Maybe the . . . bride is sad because she's . . . missing her ring?"

"Good idea!" Garry complimented. "Good thinking, Frisk. Let's hurry back and return the ring."

"I hope it opens another door." Eve whispered as the four of the quickly returned to the main hallway and went back to the hand area. Nothing had changed there. If anything, Frisk thought, the paintings seemed a bit sadder. Eve looked back and forth between the hands, not sure what to do with the ring.

"* _Put the silver ring on the left hand?"_ Chara asked her.

"Which finger?" She asked.

"Ah, the wedding ring usually goes on the fourth finger of the left hand." Garry informed her kindly. Eve stood on her toes and placed the ring on the left hand's ring finger. Immediately the hands stopped wiggling and the paintings smiled brightly. The bride looked directly at them and tossed the bouquet. Frisk dashed forward and caught it. The bride gave Frisk a beautiful smile.

"Looks like you'll be married next, Frisk." Garry teased. Frisk immediately walked over to Garry and held the flowers out to him. As they expected, his eyes widened and his cheeks turned a little pink. "O-Oh! N-no, keep them! I can't." He turned away, flustered. Frisk tried not to laugh and instead turned to Eve, lowering their eyelids as they held out the bouquet instead to the little girl. Eve seemed a little starstruck as she took the flowers. Frisk winked and gave them some finger pistols.

"Flowers." Frisk prompted. It didn't seem to work how they had planned.

Chara cut in to explain, " _*The creepy painting wants flowers._ "

"Oh!" Eve understood.

"What?" Garry asked. Eve quickly explained. Garry looked at the bouquet. "It seems such a waste to give that thing such a beautiful bouquet . . . but I suppose we must." They were all reluctant to approach the painting again, but they did so anyway. It cackled as they returned and repeated its question about wanting flowers from them. Eve held out the bouquet for the painting to smell.

"Ehehe, thanks. It smells niiice . . . eheheh." It grinned sinisterly. "Well, chow time!" It snatched the flowers from Eve's hand, and the girl reared back so that her hands wouldn't be snapped off. The painting turned red and black, its eyes becoming voids. It made horrible crunching noises as the flowers were ripped to shreds before them and swallowed. Eve cowered back a little against Garry while Garry made sure to keep a hand on both of the children. Frisk felt their body go cold. The painting had wanted to do that to their roses.

The painting returned to its normal blue and black color scheme, grinning cheerfully at them. "Ahhh, that was good . . . eheheh. Thank you, thanks so much. As promised, you can go through." The painting's face transformed into a door large enough for them all to pass through. However it's gravelly voice still sounded, "Just take this door in . . . Well, see ya . . . eheheheh!"

Frisk grabbed the door hand, surprised to feel that it was three-dimensional, and pulled the door open to scramble through it. Eve followed next with Chara and Garry ducked down and pulled the door shut. The new room they were in was small with only two single paintings and another door. They stopped briefly to read the titles of a painting with a clumsy-looking box and another with a pair of hands closing in around a heart.

Frisk froze at the sight of the second one. The heart in the picture had a haunting glow to it that seemed to resonate with them. Their chest tingled, much like it did whenever their Soul was summoned for battle. The hands reaching for the red heart were covered with what appeared to be dust. There were long green sleeves that appeared to be spotted with blood. Frisk felt cold at the sight, their eyes swimming a bit as their throat tightened. Chara said nothing next to them as they stared as well. Frisk didn't know what they were thinking, but they had the feeling that Chara was considering the same thing.

"* _It is called_ Heart in Custody _, but it should be called_ Soul in Custody." The ghost child stated emotionlessly. Frisk glanced at them. What could such a painting be doing here? Chara only shrugged in response.

"Frisk?" Eve called, confused at Frisk's intense study of the painting.

"Hm? What's the matter?" Garry added, coming to a stop by the door.

Frisk only hesitated before shaking their head and following after their companions. Perhaps they were overthinking things.


	3. Mannequin Heads

The next room proved to be disquieting. The entire hallway was filled with white mannequin heads, staring in all directions. There was only a single pathway past them, and it required the group to walk in single file. The walls had three giant portraits of the mannequin heads bigger than some cars Frisk had seen with looming gazes. A shiver of unease ran straight up Frisk's back.

"* _Ugh._ " Chara summed up perfectly.

"This place is just becoming worse and worse." Garry muttered, unknowingly agreeing as he grabbed his own elbows. He watched the heads on the ground warily. Frisk hoped dearly that none of them would cause some kind of harm.

Eve went to the single table in the room and signed her name and Frisk's again in the diary there. Garry followed after her to also sign his name. Frisk didn't feel very reassured by a Save in such a place. They felt distinctly threatened by the room despite the fact nothing was moving.

"Let's just get out of here." Garry suggested. Eve nodded in agreement, clutching her rose and skirt tightly in her hands as she walked forward. Frisk went next with Garry taking the back. The heads were so close to the wall and together that there was no way they could possibly step between them. Frisk felt as if their eyes were following them. Eve kept her gaze determinedly forward.

Chara floated over the heads and watched the portraits as they passed by. "* _Did that picture's eyes move?"_ They wondered aloud, pausing to stare at it. The picture's eyes stared after Frisk's group but didn't move. Eve tensed at Chara's murmuring, her grip tightening on her skirt. Frisk patted her shoulder comfortingly. They exited the room quickly.

The new room they entered was gigantic. There were a few walls displaying some pieces of art across the walls, but what attracted Frisk's attention were the multiple paintings of Ladies hung up on the far side of the room. Garry and Eve both froze as they saw them as well. They all held their breath, waiting to be attacked, but none of them did. Even so, the group made the silent decision to go in a different direction away from them, heading south of their position instead.

There were four headless metal mannequins standing sentry at the end of each wall. There seemed to be alleyways created up and down this half of the room. Frisk could see a painted Lady between each alleyway, her picture hanging up on the far wall. They all had different colored outfits. Frisk wondered if that was important.

They stumbled across a single door, but when they went to open it, it was locked. Garry gave a frustrated sigh as Frisk kicked the door just a little bit.

"This room is not good for my health." Garry murmured as they turned and continued their search. He couldn't seem to stop looking over his shoulder. Frisk could tell he was on edge just like them. Nearly dying from one of those Ladies was bound to do that. "Eve, Frisk, we should find a vase. Just to make sure our flowers don't start wilting."

"Can they do that?" Eve asked, worried.

"I'm not sure. . . But it's better to be safe rather than sorry."

"* _This translating stuff is really becoming tedious._ " Chara grumbled to Frisk as they crossed their arms and floated on their front next to them. Frisk's fingers reached out and touched one of the headless mannequins. It didn't come to life. "* _Why did that stupid orb not take us somewhere where the people speak our language?"_

Frisk only shrugged in response. Now that they thought about it, they had yet to find out where that orb went. If they needed that orb to return, then they needed to find it soon. Frisk didn't mind being out of the Underground . . . but they had been hoping of possibly helping the monsters in some way. They had been hoping to find a way to free the monsters while they had been heading for the exit to the Underground. They supposed that, at the moment, it was moot point.

"What orb?" Eve asked quietly, gazing at Frisk and Chara.

"What's all this now?" Garry also asked, missing part of the conversation. "I'm guessing Chara spoke? What did they say?"

"* _This is so stupid. Translating people talking about me._ " Chara griped again.

Frisk opened their mouth to explain what orb they needed to look out for (the more people keeping an eye out for the orb the better), however a door caught their eye. They pointed at it and then rushed over. They attempted to turn the knob, but it only clicked. It was locked. There was a Save diary on the table next to it. Eve walked over with Garry to write in it.

Suddenly Garry squeaked in surprise, startling the children. Frisk and Eve spun "O-Oh, sorry . . . I thought I saw something crawl across that window." He seemed vaguely embarrassed by his little outburst, ducking his head to finish signing the diary. Frisk tilted their head and watched the window, but didn't see anything move.

" _*Soooo brave and dependable._ " Chara mocked again.

The door seemed to be connected to an isolated room in the middle of the large gallery of sorts that they were in. There were more alleyways that were lined with even more Ladies. So far none had moved, but Frisk knew better than to trust them. They had been safe in the last large room they had been in, but this was suspicious.

They followed the wall of the room around to the back to find even more doors. There were two with a stool in between them. When they approached the door on the left, they discovered some writing.

"Enter password." Garry read. There was a panel with rolling numbers. The password called for four numbers. "Did either of you see anything like a password?" Frisk and Eve shook their heads. "We should look around a bit more, then." Garry leaned around the corner to eye the Ladies. " . . . But let's be careful. I don't like how many there are . . ."

Eve walked over to the second door. There was another number input necessary for this door as well. "'How many paintings of women are there in this room?'" She read. "We need to count them."

"There are four on that side of the room." Frisk said and Chara relayed.

"Then let's check the right side." Garry suggested, leading the way to the upper part of the room. The four of them stayed near the opposite wall as they walked and counted. They needed to go up and down the alleyways. Still none of the Ladies attacked them. It was as they were passing down the third row did Frisk realize there was an odd painting out.

It was a man suspended by his legs and hanging upside down. Frisk didn't need either Garry or Eve to read the plaque to guess the name of this piece. He was wearing a number on his shirt, however all of the numbers were upside down.

"Ah. This was one of the paintings in the gallery." Garry noted. He tucked his hands into his pants' pockets.

Frisk examined the hanged man's face. He seemed distressed rather than content. They decided they didn't like this painting at all. The strokes of it were rough and haphazard, as if the painter had been in a fury when he had made it.

" _*You thought that you would never visit an art gallery again after this._ " Chara said. Eve shot both Frisk and Chara an amused smile. Frisk smiled back. They weren't sure if Chara had been narrating Frisk's or Eve's thoughts.

"Could this number be the password?" Garry suggested. "6295."

"Oh." Eve breathed, realizing the numbers were upside down. She leaned a little forward to gaze at the numbers before straightening again. She pointed at one of the Ladies. "We should finish counting." She suggested.

"You're right. Don't forget the number now! 6295!" There were only a few more painted women in the gallery after that. Frisk counted a total of fourteen. They eagerly hurried back to the doors to enter the passwords. Frisk entered _The Hanged Man_ 's password into the door first. There was an unlocking sound, and the four entered.

It was a small room that they entered with a single vase on a table, and an easel of what seemed to be a painting of the vase. There was a stool in front of the easel. Frisk stared at the stool.

"* _There is no one around, but you feel a presence . . ._ " Chara noted. They had already drifted over the vase. Something shattered outside and the humans jumped, spinning to face the door. Frisk's heart rate skyrocketed, their pulse fluttering with a sudden injection of adrenaline. Eve scrambled away from the door just in case and then fell silent. They waited for a long moment, but they couldn't hear anything.

"Are we . . . safe?" Eve asked. Chara didn't need to translate for her. Frisk was starting to recognize some words already. At least for simple sentences.

"* _The door will hold._ " Chara said.

"That's good." Eve breathed.

"What was that?" Garry asked. Eve kept forgetting to translate for Chara. She quickly explained and then apologized for not being faster. Garry shook his head. "No no, it's quite alright. It's just a little . . . difficult."

"I won't forget again." Eve promised. Garry smiled at her. His face seemed so much younger when he did.

"Thank you. For now, though . . . This seems to be a good place to stop. At least there aren't any Ladies in here." Garry sighed. Nobody approached the stool, however, and instead sat on the floor. "I don't believe we have been here very long, and yet I feel so hungry and tired."

"I have . . . some food." Frisk admitted. This time Eve was quick to translate for Garry right after Chara translated for Frisk.

" _*She has to be becoming annoyed by this double translating as well._ " Chara muttered.

"You do?" She responded eagerly.

Frisk nodded, and then paused. They glanced at Chara briefly before they tugged at their shorts. "The food . . . might not fill you up very much. Its purpose is more to . . . heal your Soul rather than to really fill you. But it's tasty! And . . . at least your stomach won't growl."

"Heal our Souls?" Eve asked slowly after she had repeated Frisk's answer for Garry to hear. Frisk nodded and reached into their inventory. They pulled out their stick, two Cinnamon Bunnies, and a Nice Cream. They offered their friends the choice of food they wanted. Eve took the Nice Cream and Garry grabbed a Cinnamon Bunny.

"How did you fit those in your pockets?" Garry asked, baffled. He was mostly looking at the stick. Frisk couldn't possibly explain their inventory. Instead they opened their Cinnamon Bunny from its wrapper and took a bite. Already they felt a lot better as it practically melted in their mouth. They weren't the only one who sighed as they ate. "These are delicious!" Garry exclaimed. "Where did you get such things?"

"* _That is a lot of translating if you explain._ " Chara said, their only warning to Frisk that they weren't going to repeat everything they say. Frisk had to simplify it. Hopefully they would understand enough.

"I . . . fell into the Underground," They explained slowly so Chara and Eve had time to translate, "and discovered monsters. They're very friendly . . . but some are . . . dangerous. We're eating monster food. It heals your Soul."

"Wait, are you saying monsters are real?" Garry asked, his one visible eye widening.

"* _We are in an art gallery that is trying to kill us. *Your Souls are connected to roses. *Monsters surprise you?_ " Eve couldn't possibly relay the amount of drawl that was in Chara's voice. She didn't even try.

" . . . I suppose you have a point." Garry admitted.

"How did you escape?" Eve asked as she bit into the cone of her Nice Cream. The crunch of it was rather loud in the small room.

Frisk glanced away, gazing around the mostly-empty room. The grey walls were dreary rather than relaxing. It was quiet outside of the room. The atmosphere still felt a little oppressing. "I didn't." Frisk finally said. "There was a magic orb . . . called the Legendary Artifact. When I touched it . . . It brought me here, to the gallery."

"So you're far more lost than we are." Eve said quietly, her eyes softening with sympathy.

Garry finished off his Bunny and shoved the wrapper into his pocket. His face was serious as he said, "When we get out of the gallery, you should come with us. We'll somehow get you home, Frisk." Eve nodded in agreement.

Frisk smiled at their kindness, but didn't respond to it. Chara didn't agree or disagree with the plan. Frisk knew that Chara would go with them wherever, so Frisk supposed Chara didn't have much of a choice. Still, Frisk would've listened to them if they had voiced their opinion.

"I need to find the Artifact." Frisk told them instead. Chara floated upside down now, spinning in place. It was actually rather creepy, except for the utterly bored look on their face. That was almost funny. They translated everything in a monotonous voice.

"What if it just sends you back to the monsters?" Eve fiddled with the wrapper of her own treat. Frisk held their hand out to take it, and Eve handed it over. They placed it back into their inventory to discard later. They shrugged in response to Eve's question. If they were sent back, then they were sent back. At least they would be in somewhat familiar territory, even if they were more likely to die. Frisk didn't tell them this.

"I'm not sure how comfortable I am condemning a child to monsters . . ." Garry said. "Haven't you faced enough dangers?"

Frisk shrugged again. "It's okay."

"What about you, Chara? How do you feel about all of this?" The man asked as he glanced around. He couldn't see Chara, but he still made the attempt to let them know they were including the spirit. His gaze landed on the ground and stayed there as he frowned a little in confusion.

Chara appeared surprised to be addressed. They righted themselves and landed on the floor as they considered their response. They doubted that Chara would ever admit it, but the spirit seemed pleased to have more than Frisk to talk to. Now that they thought about it, Chara had seemed somewhat glad to have Frisk to talk to when they discovered that Frisk could see and hear them. They had been a rather talkative in the beginning. Maybe Chara was lonelier than Frisk had considered before.

"* _. . . I would prefer to return to the Underground. We have . . . unfinished business."_ They finally admitted.

"Oh." Frisk said simply. Well, then they were decided. They stood up and picked up their stick to carry in their hand. It wouldn't be good in case of defense, but it may be able to distract an enemy when the time comes. They tilted their head at Garry and Eve to show they were ready to go.

"Wait, before we leave." Garry stood and helped Eve to her feet. "There are holes here on the floor.

There were four small indents on the floor where Garry was pointing. They looked spaced out enough for a small table. Eve was already on the move, pushing the table with the vase's table over to the holes. It only took a little bit of effort before the table clicked into place. As they listened, it sounded like someone stood up and left. Somewhere outside there was a sound. The group looked at each other with confused curiosity.

Frisk and Eve were headed back towards the door, but Garry went instead to examine the vase. He sighed a little. "It's empty."

"Do you need it?" Eve asked, concerned.

Garry reached into his pocket and gently pulled out his rose. He opened his mouth to answer, but then stopped as he stared at the rose in surprise. "It's fully healed!"

"The food worked!" Eve cheered, turning to Frisk happily. "Do you have any more?" Frisk shook their head. Eve deflated a bit. "Oh. We ate all of your food?"

"It's fine." Frisk assured her with a pat on the shoulder.

"Well, thank you Frisk." Garry smiled at them and motioned to the door. "Shall we get going?" Both children nodded and opened the door before they exited. Frisk immediately noticed something different as a splash of white caught their eye. They stared at the mannequin head resting innocently between the doors next to the stool. They couldn't recall such a thing being there earlier.

" . . . Was this thing here earlier? I . . . don't think it was." Garry said. They didn't have long to contemplate the sudden appearance of the head, however, as a familiar scraping sound caught their attention. Something was dragging itself slowly across the floor. Frisk recognized the sound of wood screeching against the tile of the room.

"Oh no." Eve moaned, pointing into the gloom. A familiar Lady in Red was on the move, and from the sounds echoing in the room she wasn't the only one.

"In here!" Frisk called, waving them over to the only other door they had noticed. They quickly inputted the amount of women in the room and the door clicked. The four of them shoved into the room and shut the door, listening carefully. The scraping of the wood against the floor became louder as a soft growl was heard. Frisk didn't know if the Lady had seen them or not. She wasn't attacking the door, so that was a good sign.

The scraping stopped briefly, listening. Nobody made a move. Frisk knew, logically, that the Lady couldn't open the door to get at them, but they couldn't help but think about her somehow bursting through the door. They clenched their stick tightly in hand. Eventually, though the scraping continued. Frisk thought they heard two of the Ladies mutter to each other.

Garry sighed. "I think we're safe." He turned to survey the room they were now in. It was another small room with a bookcase and a vase on a table. This one appeared to have water in it. There was also a sign hanging up. Garry was already moving over to read it. Frisk glanced at Eve, though. Her eyes were wide as she clenched her rose tightly to her chest. There were a couple of tremors rolling across her skin. Would she be alright? She was holding up well enough, but she was so young.

Chara joined Garry to gaze at the sign, repeating as the man read, "'Please do not touch the displays. If by any change you damage any exhibits, you will . . .'" Garry stopped, squinting at the paper. "I see." Is all he said.

"* _Some of the letters are missing._ " Chara explained Garry's sudden silence. Frisk wondered what the rest had to say, but they had a feeling about what it was. This gallery wasn't exactly subtle about wanting to kill them, for whatever reason.

Eve quietly moved over to the bookcase and pulled out the single book that was sitting there. She flipped it open to read slowly, "'Wonderful Days'." A loud crash was once again heard outside, causing everyone in the room to jump. Chara hissed a curse under their breath. Frisk was starting to wonder if they would ever be able to relax again. At least they were safe in this room, right?

Hesitantly Eve continued, "'The gallery is like a spooky amusement park with lots of strange things! It's so much fun playing here, the day was over before I knew it! Isn't it a fantastic place? Why don't you join me here? You'll never be lonely with all of this company . . .'" She stopped and shot her companions a worried glance.

"Who would write such a book?" Garry muttered, scratching at his neck nervously. It felt very foreboding.

"* _It is almost as if the gallery was expecting you._ " Chara said. Eve's eyes widened more at the comment, alarmed.

"Let's just get out of here." Garry continued, not knowing what Chara had said. Eve placed the book back on the shelf. "The sooner we leave, the better we'll be, I think."

Even though he said this, all of them were reluctant to return back to the main room. They could only hear a couple of Ladies moving around, but who's to say that all of them wouldn't come to life at some point? They needed to be careful. Something in the room had changed, and Frisk wasn't sure if it was for the better.

They moved quickly but as quietly as they could around the walls, heads turning this way and that for any signs of change. Other than a couple of Ladies missing from where they had been hanging, they couldn't spot anything. _The Hanged Man_ almost seemed to grin at them as they passed by him, mocking them. Frisk tried not to look at it.

"* _There is a door here._ " Chara pointed out.

"Door?" Eve asked hurrying backwards towards Chara's voice. "Was this here before?" She asked.

"* _We did not look._ " Chara rolled their eyes a bit as Frisk and Garry joined them.

"Lady." Frisk warned, hearing scraping sounds coming closer. The four pushed inside without hesitation, and then paused at the sight of the mostly empty room. There was a single mirror on the far wall . . . and that was it. This was the only room they had yet to explore besides the locked one. There must be a trick in here.

"Just a mirror." Eve said, sounding relieved. She glanced around the room and brushed her fingers over the leaves of her rose. Frisk considered asking her if she wanted them to carry the rose in their inventory, but decided against it. She seemed to be using it as a safety blanket for the moment.

The three of them approached the mirror. It was long enough to show them all above the knees, and wide enough to accommodate all three of them. Chara floated above Frisk, leaning forward to study the mirror, however their reflection didn't appear in the glass. Frisk had kind of expected them to even though Chara had never appeared in the glass before.

"* _It's you!_ " The spirit said, grinning a little in amusement. Frisk couldn't help the small smile as well. It was indeed them. They looked somewhat tired and dirty from travelling through the Underground, but physically fine. Their sweater wasn't in the best shape with bits of it torn up from traveling through the cold Underground and from attacks from monsters. Their knee still had the band-aid on it.

Eve and Garry, on the other hand, were clearly becoming tired. Garry already had some darkness around his eye before they had really gone through these trials, but now it appeared to be more prominent. Eve was pale despite her calm face. She was still fairly young and probably needed a nap. Frisk thought a nap for all of them would be rather appropriate, actually.

"I don't see anything strange about this mirror." Garry finally said once they were all done with examining themselves. They waited one more moment, checking the mirror one last time. Silence reigned until suddenly something crashed again. They all jumped back from the mirror as Garry shrieked a little.

"Good gosh!" He cried, and Chara mocked as they repeated it. "How many times is that going to happen?" He clenched the front of his shirt, leaning against the wall and letting his head thunk against the surface. "This isn't good for my heart . . ."

"* _Look._ " Chara said immediately after, and Frisk turned towards the doorway. It was blocked now by a mannequin head. They rushed over to it.

"What the . . . ? When did this get into the room . . . ?" Garry asked, baffled and frowning.

"Can we move it?" Eve asked, already reaching for it. Frisk stopped her, though, wary.

"Don't touch the art?" Their voice tilted up in a question at the end that Chara relayed.

"They're right." Garry agreed. "But what do we do now? It's blocking the door."

Frisk pointed back towards the mirror questioningly. There had to be a reason why the door was blocked, but there was only one other thing in the room. Maybe they actually had missed something. The four of them approached the mirror again to look, but as soon as they peered into the glass they noticed a new figure. The mannequin head was floating, gazing with them in the mirror over Garry's shoulder. The man screamed and threw himself to the side as Frisk and Eve scrambled backwards in the opposite direction. Garry fell backwards onto the ground as the mannequin head landed on the floor as well.

"* _I did not even see it!_ " Chara gasped, shocked as well.

"W-Wh-WHAT is _THAT_?!" Garry cried. A beat passed as he processed the head, and then he stood up swiftly. His face darkened with anger, abruptly furious. He stormed over to the head and pulled his leg back. "Why, you . . . !"

"Wait!" Eve cried, rushing over to grab Garry's arm and pull him back a bit. "Don't hurt the art!"

Garry paused, clearly still seething as he glared holes into the expressionless mannequin, before he looked to Eve. Her eyes were wide with worry as she gripped his sleeve. He took a couple more breaths before he finally lowered his foot with a sigh, his anger leaving him with the whoosh of air. "R-Right, Eve. My, that was immature of me . . ."

"It's okay." She reassured him with a grateful smile. Garry patted her head in thanks as he glanced at Frisk as well.

"Sorry about that. I just . . ." He trailed off, unable to finish.

"* _Understandable._ " Chara muttered. Frisk nodded in agreement.

"They understand." Eve explained.

Calmer now, the man smiled. "Well . . . let's go." He told them. They moved around the mannequin head and exited the room again and headed south. There were more scraping sounds. Frisk wondered if all of the sounds of things breaking indicated more Ladies were coming to life. Their theory was confirmed as a Lady in Green turned the corner. She was absurdly fast, crawling her way down the path towards them.

"This way!" Frisk cried, running towards the side. The Lady was swift on their heels, faster than any of the Ladies they had seen yet. Frisk had to hop to avoid her grip as they kept Eve in front of them. As long as the rose was protected, it was fine.

"Here!" Garry gasped as he spotted a gap in the wall big enough for all of them to shimmy through that the Lady couldn't. Her frame was too wide. Garry slipped in first and grabbed Eve's hand to tug her through. Frisk came to a stop in front of the gap and brandished their stick. "Frisk!" Garry called. Frisk threw their stick with all of their might. The Lady paused, watching the stick fly overhead to land behind her. She gave the stick a confused look before she reared back on Frisk, her grin sharpening as she attacked again. Frisk fled.

"* _That failed to accomplish anything._ " Chara declared as both of them leaped into the gap and shimmied to the other side. Garry helped to pull Frisk through.

"Eve?" They called, realizing the girl was missing.

"Here!" She called, a couple of meters away as she picked up something from the floor. She held it aloft. The grey key shined in the low lighting.

"Good-" Garry started, when glass shattered again as the Lady in Red near Eve burst from the wall. Eve cried out in shock. "Eve!" Garry yelled. Eve ran away from the Lady with the painting on her heels. Garry and Frisk moved to follow her, but a Lady in Blue turned the corner and charged at them. Garry grabbed Frisk's hand and ran away, muttering what sounded like possibly bad words under his breath.

As they darted past the alleyways, they could see Eve running as well. "This way!" Frisk called to her, waving an arm to get her attention. Eve dashed towards them, barely avoiding the hands of the Ladies following her, and rejoining her friends. She held Frisk's stick in her hand and she swatted hard at the Lady in Blue's hands as she reached for Garry. The Lady hissed in annoyance. Eve squeaked.

"Run!" Garry shouted, scooping Eve up and under his arm as he spun on his heel to run back towards where he and Frisk had just come from. For a moment Frisk quickly wondered what in the world he was doing before they realized he was running towards one of the locked doors. Eve's key had to go somewhere!

Despite his load, Garry was able to dodge around the Ladies rather deftly. Frisk easily dodged their grabby hands as well, although they got their sock torn in the process. The man had already taken the key from Eve and placed her down at the door as he scrambled to open it. They were lucky that it was the right door on their first try as he gave a cry of delight and shoved it open.

"Hurry, hurry!" He ushered the children, waving them in. Chara, Eve, and Frisk rushed through before Garry ran in as well to slam the door shut. All three of them pressed themselves against the door to hold it shut as multiple Ladies pounded on it angrily. None of the humans moved until the Ladies reluctantly gave up and they could hear the paintings scrape away. Frisk's pulse did not slow until the adrenaline started to fade away. Only then did the allow themselves to slump to the ground with a sigh. Garry was hunched over panting again from running. Eve leaned against the door and took a couple of steadying breaths.

"Are you alright?" Frisk asked the little girl, climbing back to their feet to touch her shoulders. She nodded, her face even paler but clearly unharmed. She turned to Garry and thanked him quietly.

"I'm just glad we're all okay." He responded, straightening now that he had his breath back. He brushed his hair briefly out of his face, but it fell back to cover his eye right away. His exposed eye darted around the children to check on them. Frisk felt particularly safe now. They couldn't explain it, but they were happy to have an adult with them on this terrible adventure. They weren't used to such supervision, so it was a little strange, but they were glad nonetheless.

They ran their hands over their face to wipe off the sweat there. They hoped rather futily that this room would be the climax of their adventure here. Frisk was determined to get these two kind people home.

Eve held out Frisk's stick to them as both of them returned to their feet. Frisk was grateful that she had managed to pick it up even as she was being chased. They placed the stick back in their inventory as they gazed around the room they were now in. It was much more furnished than any of the previous rooms with bookshelves, a couple windows (too foggy to see through), and a strange white couch in the middle of the room. There were a couple of stools as well. The couch looked amazingly comfortable, and Frisk's feet coaxed them to sit upon it, however their gaze was drawn to the large portrait in the room that Garry and Eve were standing at and staring.

"*'Couple'." Chara repeated what Garry read. "* _It depicts a familiar man and woman . . ._ " Frisk had never seen the people in the painting before. Chara wasn't looking at Frisk, however, and instead was gazing at Eve. Did Eve know the people in the painting somehow?

Eve had frozen as she stared at the painting. Her red eyes welled up a little with tears, but she didn't cry. Instead she clenched her skirt and stiffened, shoulders shaking with repressed feelings. She swallowed thickly. These two were . . . !

"What is it, Eve?" Garry asked quietly, confused by the girl's reaction. He shot a concerned glanced at Eve's face. The girl didn't respond for a long moment. She seemed to struggle to form her words, yet even as she spoke it was so soft that Chara didn't hear it. Garry caught it however as he exclaimed, "Huh?! The people in this painting are your dad and mom?"

Frisk did a double take, looking harder at the painting. The woman wore a red business suit with a long skirt. Her brown hair was done up nicely. She had red eyes similar to Eve's. The man also had brown hair with dark eyes that matched his grey suit. The quality of their outfits matched well with Eve's. They must have quite a bit of money, Frisk thought.

Garry smiled. "Aha . . . They do resemble you a bit, Eve." He frowned at the painting, crossing his arms in thought. "But why would such a painting be down here?"

Eve sniffed loudly and shook her head, clearly trying to rein in her emotions. Her voice was still tremulous and weak, however, as she said, "We haven't . . . found any other people from the gallery. What if . . . what if my mama and papa are here? Where . . . where are they?"

Chara glanced at Frisk and murmured lowly, "* _To think this is what gets her . . ._ " Frisk nodded silently.

"Ah? Where are they?" Garry hummed in consideration. "Well, I can't say that I know either." Eve sniffled again and ducked her head. She was shaking still. Garry fretted a bit, quickly to reassure her, "D-Don't worry. They must be somewhere!" Eve didn't respond as she continued to wipe at her eyes. She pulled out a lace handkerchief from her pocket and patted at her face. For just a moment she buried her face into the soft lace, taking a deep breath. Garry's eyes softened with worry and pity. Frisk reached forward to rub Eve's back.

"* _She is tough,_ " Chara murmured more to Frisk where Eve couldn't hear, " _but this place is beginning to get to her as well._ "

"Here," Garry suggested, gently leading Eve over towards the couch, "why don't you rest a bit while Frisk and I look around? This couch appears to be awfully comfortable!" Eve didn't fight him as she walked over to the couch and hopped up onto it. She sunk into the plush seating and leaned back without a sound. Her eyes stared at the handkerchief in her hands as her fingers ran over some embroidery that Frisk assumed was her name.

Garry motioned Frisk over so that they could look at the bookshelves together. They had a number of books in them, but nothing that particularly stood out to them. One tall bookshelf was singled out as it sat next to a window. Frisk gazed at it curiously. Garry examined the bottom of the bookshelf. There were signs that it had been moved.

"Ah. I think this could be moved." The man commented idly. Frisk tapped on his shoulder and motioned to the right. "What's this? You want it moved right?" Frisk nodded. "Okay! Step back a little, Frisk.." Garry moved around to the left side of the bookcase and heaved. The bookcase groaned a bit, but moved easily enough across the floor until it met up with the other bookcase. Garry sighed and stepped back to wipe his forehead. "Ah." He scratched his head. "It's covering the window. Oh well." Frisk glanced around to see if there was a switch or something in there, but there was nothing.

"* _That was pointless._ " Chara muttered from where they gazed at the markings on the ground from over Frisk's shoulder. They moved to hover around Garry, playfully sitting on his shoulders where he couldn't feel them. Frisk grinned, and then got an idea.

They walked back over to Eve and squatted a bit to look her in the face. She met their gaze, appearing a bit steadier now. Frisk tilted their head some and picked up the rose she had placed next to her before playing catching it between their teeth and winking at her. They posed overdramatically, hand coming to their forehead as they swooned, before they spun in a quick circle to point finger guns at her. Eve smiled a bit, giving a soft laugh. Pleased, Frisk returned her rose to her.

Garry stood across the room leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, watching with his own relieved smile. It was good to see Eve finally returning to herself. "Are you two ready to go then?" Eve slid off of the couch and reached for Frisk's hand, taking it in theirs as they walked back over to join Garry. Both her and Frisk nodded. Garry turned to the door and turned the knob . . . but the door held fast. He tugged on it and jiggled the handle, but nothing happened.

"* _The door won't open._ " Chara said, confused. They moved off of Garry to stand by Frisk, leaning forward expectantly. "* _That cannot be good._ "

"Wh . . . are you kidding me? The door was wide open . . ." Garry grumbled, baffled. Just then something banged loudly on the door. The group scrambled back as the entire door shook, but held. "T-That sound . . . is that coming from outside?" Garry cried. The pounding occurred again, angrier this time. Garry's hand found Frisk's as he pulled the children closer to him. Eve's grip tightened around Frisk's hand. "Something's at the door . . . Be careful, guys."

The banging echoed now, seeming to fill up the entire room. The entirety of the gallery seemed to shake under the force of it. They were under siege, but how could art have such power? The three of them moved away from the doors and looked around for some kind of exit. Frisk couldn't think over the walls groaning under the assault from the outside. They could hear the creatures outside banging around the room looking for a way in. Eve attempted again to yank the door open, but it was almost as if it was nailed shut. Sweat broke out across the Frisk's skin as they held tight to their companions' hands. Garry was muttering something to himself, but Chara couldn't translate. They were also stay close the group, their back to Frisk's.

Eve yelped a little as something pounded on the window that was blocked by the bookcase. Frisk was abruptly glad that they had asked Garry to move the bookcase in front of the glass. They were positive that something would've broken in through there. They didn't receive much time to celebrate this small victory, though, as the wall nearby groaned and caved with a crash. Ladies growled as they burst into the room.

Nobody had time to even scream in horror before Frisk was moving. There was no way to talk to these things, so they decided to take a lesson from their fight with Undyne and FLEE. They yanked their companions after them as they made a mad dash towards their only exit. They only made a small noise as one of the Ladies's hands grabbed Frisk's sleeve and yanked hard, cutting furious lines into their skin. They didn't have time to complain as they ducked through the broken wall and out into the main area with Garry and Eve.

It was havoc outside as almost every piece of art in the room seemed to have come to life and was on the hunt. Frisk didn't know what had angered them, but they didn't want to stay any longer to find out. But they didn't know where to go! All of the other doors were dead ends, and they were blocked by those cursed mannequin heads! They dithered, panicking a bit.

"* _The final locked door! Run for it!_ " Chara yelled, already flying off. Eve didn't hesitate to follow, and the three ran as quickly as they could after the ghost. The children ducked out of the way as a headless mannequin swiped at them, but Garry had to release Frisk's hand in the effort to not get caught. He cried out as the metal slammed into his shoulder. Frisk and Eve pulled to a stop, horrified.

He yelled something at them as he darted around the mannequin and leaped madly away from the groping hands of a Lady. Frisk didn't need a translation as they yanked Eve after them and ran after Chara again. With his longer legs, Garry quickly caught up to them. His coat flapped behind him as he held up the rear. The final door was indeed ajar, and the humans shoved through it and slammed the door behind them. They didn't stop running down the long hallway until they were sure they were safe, eventually slowing to a stop.

Frisk hunched over, panting along with Eve and Garry. Their legs shook terribly, almost enough to cause them to collapse. They hadn't been that scared since they had first been attacked by Undyne. Chara cursed loudly, not caring about the young ears around them as they shook their head.

"* _What is WRONG with this place?!"_ They cried.

Garry straightened and ran a hand into his hair as he gazed back towards the doorway. Nothing appeared to be coming after them. He said something, and Chara quickly went back to translate, "That should be . . . far enough, I think." The man grinned, huffing a laugh as his shaking hand held his injured shoulder. He didn't seem to be in too much pain if he was laughing. "We certainly showed THEM!" He crowed with well-deserved cockiness.

He grinned at Frisk, who moved to stand next to him and look as well. The door was holding firm. He high-fived the younger human before his smile calmed down into a relieved one. Frisk grinned back at him, glad to be out of such a terrible room. They had escaped with minimal damage this time despite the blood slowly running down their arm. It throbbed some, but not too badly. They'd certainly had worse.

"My . . . well then," Garry crossed his arms and turned to Eve, who was a little bit away from them, "let's keep go . . . Eve?" Frisk turned as well to see Eve on her knees. Her gaze was foggy as she swayed, her face bloodless. Garry and Frisk quickly dropped to their knees in front of her. "Oh my, what is it?" Garry asked.

"Are you okay?" Frisk added.

"* _Clearly not!_ " Chara said, hovering a little angrily with their anxiousness next to them.

Eve didn't respond as her eyes fell shut and she collapsed. Both Frisk and Chara cried out as Garry's hands moved to support her. "E-Eve?! Stay with me, now!"

"Eve!" Frisk cried. The three of them called her name, but the girl didn't wake. Garry scooped her up immediately, cradling her in a princess hold. Her limp form in his arms made Frisk's body feel as if it was drenched with ice water.

"Frisk! Grab her rose! We need to find a safe place to rest!" Garry commanded, nodding to the rose that Eve had dropped. It was missing a couple of petals now.

"* _Grab the rose."_ Chara repeated as well. Frisk did as commanded and held the rose to them. It seemed a little wilted.

"Hurry!" Garry called, and together the three of the went off in search of a safe room. If there wasn't one, Frisk thought, then they would make it safe. They just hoped Eve was alright.


End file.
